(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water-gel explosive comprising ammonium nitrate alone or in admixture with other inorganic oxidized acid salt, water, nitroparaffin having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, gelatinizing agents for water and nitroparaffin, glass hollow microspheres and an amide, which can be initiated by the No. 6 detonator in an unconfined state in a small diameter cartridge, even at low temperature, and a method of producing the same.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
There have hitherto been known two kinds of explosives containing nitroparaffin. The one does not contain water and the other contains water. The use of water has the following merits. The inorganic oxidized acid salt is dissolved in water to form a relatively homogeneous explosive, and the explosive is highly reactive at the detonation point and has a high detonation velocity. However, the use of water has the following demerits. Water has a heat reducing effect, and further tends to separate from nitroparaffin.
Nitroparaffin series explosives containing no water are disclosed in various patents, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,338,165, 3,377,217, 3,762,970 and the like. Some of the nitroparaffin series explosives containing no water are initiated by a blasting cap and some of them are not initiated by a blasting cap. Nitroparaffin series explosives containing water are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,419,444, 3,765,966 and the like. In general, nitroparaffin series explosives containing water are fewer in the number of explosives having cap sensitivity than nitroparaffin series explosives containing no water. Nitroparaffin series explosives having cap sensitivity are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,765,966, 3,985,593 and the like. The explosive disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,985,593 contains perchlorate or a mixture thereof with inorganic oxidized acid salt, and is inferior in performance (e.g., initiation sensitivity in an unconfined state, and force of explosive) and in the price compared to the explosive of the present invention containing ammonium nitrate or a mixture thereof with other inorganic oxidized acid salt. The explosive disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,765,966 is somewhat similar to that of the present invention in the composition. However, even when the nitromethane content is increased in the explosive of U.S. Pat. No. 3,765,966, the explosive is not initiated by a No. 6 detonator in an unconfined state in a small diameter cartridge at low temperature; also the explosive does not contain amide and perchlorate. The inventors have solved the above described drawbacks of prior explosives.